About our Son Nathan’s Full Name is ROBERT NATHANIEL MARTENS His rank was Hospitalman, which is abbreviated HN. Nathan was a US Navy Corpsman and attended boot camp at Great Lakes Naval Station, Great Lakes, Illinois. He then attended Corps School at Great Lakes. After that he went to Field Medical Service School at Camp Johnson, NC. When that was completed he was assigned to II Marine division, 3rd battalion 6th Marine regiment, India Company. They deployed to Iraq on August 25, 2005. His unit was stationed at Camp Wolf in Al Qaim, Iraq. Which is just a few miles from the Syrian border along the Euphrates River. While participating on a night patrol at 12:10 a.m. on September 6, 2005, the HMMWV Nathan was a passenger in rolled over killing him and seriously injuring 1 of the 4 marines that were also in the vehicle. His wife’s name is Erin. They were married July 24, 2004 His Daughter’s name is Riley Jo. Her birthday is October 27, 2004 Nathan’s dream was to become a pediatrician after completing his military duties. While attending Queen Creek High School Nathan was involved in FFA for 4 years and won many awards. He was an officer for two years in the QC FFA Chapter and attended the National FFA convention in Louisville, KY. He was a 4-year letterman in football and was the starting center for three years. He lettered in Baseball for three years and played catcher and first base and was an all-star his senior year. Nathan was involved in the Thunderbird 4H group for several years. He was involved in several 4H groups including Beef, Swine, Horse, Shooting sports & Vet Science. His last year in 4H he was the Club President. Our property borders the San Tan Regional Park and therefore Nathan spent a lot of time hiking, horseback riding, and running in the park. He often hiked the mountain behind our house and we traditionally climbed the high peak near Hunt & Ellsworth on New Year’s Day. He was awarded the Fleet Marine Force Pin, which basically means that he met all the training and requirements of the US Marine Corps along with all his US Navy training. Navy Corpsmen train, eat, sleep, fight and sometimes die along side of the Marines they are caring for. Nathan was a wonderful son, a good brother, a wonderful husband and a great and loving father. He was a fine respectful and respected young man.